Coral's Endosymbionts

[astron]

As it is known, many organisms live into corals. Sometimes these organisms are visible in coral fossils but it's almost impossible to reveal them becouse they are strongly attached and consist one body with the corals. I decided to try this (to reveal these organisms) when I found two big corals wich were exposed to the weathering conditions for many years and so the outer parts of them became soften and some parts of the endosymbionts were visible havihg become also soften, that's why it was necessary to cover them in a super glue to get them maintainable through the time. After long time efforts the result was as shown in tha attached pics:

1)Small piece 11,5 x 10 x 4,5 cm and

2)Big piece 18 x 15,5 x 9 cm. This piece was divided in two parts in my attemt to extract it and I did not restore it in order to have more details displayed.

Both corals are from the middle Crete Island, Greece, are of the late Miocene and of the same species (rather scleractinian), but what this species is?

Thanks in advance for any help.

Edited December 14, 2010 by astron

[Geodigger]

Hello Astron,

This is really neat stuff and the process you used to prepare those scleractinian coral masses.

My first impression is that the "endobionts" are like the "shipworms" a type of bivalve that actually do secrete a calcareous tube. Not sure just my first thought. The ones I am familiar with as fossils occur within fossilized wood from the Cretaceous and of course as well in modern wood I have seen on the West Coast of Canada.

Cheers,

Geodigger

[Geodigger]

Hello again Astron,

This link to the biology of teredos and piddocks may be of interest. piddocks and shipworms

Of course they are a type of clam (bivalve) ... I have seen modern ones within chunks of sandstone and within masses of a type of serpulid calcareous mass in British Columbia. The ones you have with the two tubes coming out may represent each siphon of these mollusks (inhalent and exhalent siphons).

[astron]

Hello again Astron,

This link to the biology of teredos and piddocks may be of interest. piddocks and shipworms

Of course they are a type of clam (bivalve) ... I have seen modern ones within chunks of sandstone and within masses of a type of serpulid calcareous mass in British Columbia. The ones you have with the two tubes coming out may represent each siphon of these mollusks (inhalent and exhalent siphons).

Hi Geodigger. Many thanks for the interest and for your valuable help. Very kind of you.

[tracer]

not sure what you've got there but it's super interesting so thanks for posting the pics.

[Wrangellian]

To add to the consensus, that was my first impression too - shipworms or piddocks.

[MOROPUS]

It looks more to Clavagella Brochii?, or another member of the Clavagellidae borrower bivalves (not Teredo!).Usually, the actual members of the group, make their holes on the Scleretinian corals.

[astron]

not sure what you've got there but it's super interesting so thanks for posting the pics.

Hello Tracer. Thanks for the comment.

[astron]

To add to the consensus, that was my first impression too - shipworms or piddocks.

Hello Wrangelian. Many thanks for the help.

[tracer]

i would think a lithophaga spp. rather than teredos or pholadids, but that's rank speculation.

here's a coral article

or two

[astron]

It looks more to Clavagella Brochii?, or another member of the Clavagellidae borrower bivalves (not Teredo!).Usually, the actual members of the group, make their holes on the Scleretinian corals.

Hello Moropus. Thanks for your valuable help. As for the ,,, holes making, is it good or bad???

[astron]

i would think a lithophaga spp. rather than teredos or pholadids, but that's rank speculation.

here's a coral article

or two

Hello again Tracer, Many thanks for your help. As I refered (maybe not clearly) in my question's post , we have pieces from two different corals(one piece from each), wich corals are of the same species.